Geometric Pattern Scrapbook Layout

This is a fun geometric shape that I chose to turn it into a sketch design.

To begin:

• Open up the design file in your Silhouette program
• Right click on the image and choose “Release Compound Path”
• Click off of the image

When you do this you will notice the entire design changes color. Click on the colored section and move it off of the mat.

Now you will see the triangles are colored in.

Click over the entire image, then right click and select “Group.” (Don’t worry about the color as this will go away in the next step).

Now go to the “Sketch” window (found along the top menu).

In the “Edge Sketch” window (on right side) select “Plain.”  (The color will now disappear.)

You can now head to the “Cut Settings” window (which is that little knife image at the top right corner of the menu).

Select “No Cut” and then move down the “Material Type” menu until you find “Silhouette Sketch Pens.” Click on that and then remove the blade and replace it with a sketch pen. I chose to use a black colored sketch pen.

Now click on “Send to Silhouette” and the magic will begin!

Here’s a look at the sketched design when finished. (You may notice a few places where my sketch pen didn’t completely color but that was an easy fix with a ruler & pen.)

Now you will need to go back into the Silhouette software and “Ungroup” the design.

Then select one section of triangle shapes. I chose the top left corner (of 8 triangles). Once you’ve selected that group then right click and chose “Group” from the menu.

Move the other shapes off the mat.

I wanted to fill the inside of the sketched design with smaller pieces of patterned paper. So to do this you need to create an offset image.

In the “Offset” window:

• Select “Internal Offset”
• Change the distance to .078 (or desired width)
• Select “Apply”

Now you can move the larger shape off the mat and you’re left with the smaller inside pieces.

I wanted to cut out a bunch of smaller pieces from patterned paper to place inside the larger sketch design on my layout so I selected the entire image.  Then “Grouped” it all together.

 

 

Then I selected “Replicate” from the top menu bar and clicked on “Fill Page.”  This option will fill your page with the design as many times as it can fit.

 

 

Now you can head back to the “Cut Setting” window and select “Patterned Paper” from the “Material” menu.

 

*Remember to change the sketch pen back to the blade.  And change the depth of the blade to what the requirements are for patterned paper.

 

 

As it turned out, the triangles designs fit nicely onto 4 in. x 4 in. pieces of patterned paper.  So I cut out several pieces and adhered them to my cutting mat.  Once they were all cut out I adhered them in various places on my layout.

 

 

 

I selected a phrase from the Silhouette Design Store and cut it from black Adhesive Backed cardstock.

 

 

There was a heart at the end of the phrase and I didn’t want it to be cut in black so I ungrouped the design.  I then moved the heart to a different place on the mat and cut that out of red Adhesive Back cardstock.

 

 

I hope that I’ve inspired you to try the sketch feature. It’s really quite easy & definitely a lot of fun!